A Gamble on Fate
by hermione169242
Summary: Takes place after the season two finale. I know it's probably been done, but give it a chance. R  R, please.


**My second Merlin fic. I can't get enough of these two.  
Takes place after the season finale. I know it's been done before, but give it a chance.  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

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**A Gamble of Fate. **

He could still feel his heart pounding against his chest. The deafening silence penetrating around the castle only served as a reminder that Camelot once again stood proudly in the midst of Old Magic and horror. Failed in attempts to relive that moment in which he had been supposedly defeated the Dragon only left him in a confused state of mind. Nestled in the confines of his chair before the table, he let one foot rest on the edge of the chair while one arm slung over his knee. The other leg continued resting on the ground and his elbow resting against the arm chair. The pad of his thumb rested against his bottom lip and his eyes were stuck on the back wall.

The arrangement of food before him, a pre celebration of sorts, lay ignored. Any other person would have ravished upon the luxury. Arthur Pendragon, on the other hand, could only focus on a number of things at the moment. His mind sought to reform to the convection that he had, in fact, defeated that dragon. Then came the notion of his people. And, then came the confusion of the inner turmoil of having feelings for a woman he could never be with.

Guinevere. Simple name resounded in his mind and held so much behind it that it nearly kept the prince off focus. The entire castle lay in celebration; a feat was even being prepared in honor of the knights who fought with all they had. Arthur was proud of them. Beyond more than every fiber of his being, yet something seemed off.

Sighing, Arthur scooted himself away from the table. The wood of the chair squealed in protest of having been moved, but allowed the distance from the table. Slowly, he stood. Having changed into his regular attire of those pants and loose, royal beige shirt, he no longer remained in the attire fit for battle. However, as a notion upon himself, he did pick up the sword from the edge of his bed and slid into the sheath which rest upon the leather belt around his muscular frame. And quietly, he escaped from the confines of his room.

Halfway down the hall, he kept a careful glance over his shoulder. He didn't dare put himself through explaining his actions to guards, who would then most likely inform his father. There were certain things that he just didn't need to deal with. His boots clicked loudly, yet no one came. Thankfully.

Once outside the castle, he stood outside the castle. The sky continued gleaming at a darkened blue. Yet, he could see a single stream of pure white echoing down from the clouds, the moon offering a sense of hope of a positive future. Standing on the steps, he glanced out in front of him. Images of those fallen bodies decorated the cobble stone ground. But, as he looked upon the land in front of him now, nothing stood out. The bodies had been given a proper goodbye and the stones cleaned of the mess. Pillars around were still broken, shards of stone scattered and shred.

Taking a breath at the damage done, Arthur slowly sat himself on the top steps. Legs folded in front of him and hands were brought to his lap till elbows rested upon his knees and let his fingers fold together once again and gently tap upon his lip.

"Glad it's over." A light voice whispered into the silence. The woman gathered her skirts and sat herself next to Arthur, stretching her legs out and letting her own hands upon her lap.

Even without glancing over, Arthur knew the voice. Guinevere. That beauty he couldn't stop thinking about. A small grin spread upon his features as he turned to look at her nevertheless. However, just as soon as it had come, it disappeared. "Not without the damage, unfortunately."

Gwen simply watched him as he averted eyes back to the grounds. "But think of all those you saved, Arthur." Her optimistic words challenged any comment he had to make otherwise. "You saved me." She whispered lightly, almost afraid to suggest anything. "Thank you."

He half wanted to tell her that it was his duty. But, that wasn't it, was it? Every emotion that pounded within him when he saw the possibility of any harm coming to Gwen prevented him using that as an excuse. "I always will, Guinevere." The trail of her name upon his lips sent chills up and down his own spine, a hint of a smile returning on his face.

As always, Gwen found his saying her name to pull a smile upon her own face. After a few moments of simply being lost upon his own handsome features, she cleared her throat and averted her gaze to the broken pillar in front of her. "What now?" She questioned lightly.

"I have an idea." He stumbled upon words before he quickly realized just who he was walking too. With Gwen, there was no need to hide who he was or be worried of being judged. In fact, it was her faith in him that pushed him to become who he was. "For the knights. Some sort of…special.." He trailed off, uncertain at how to phrase just what it was he could suggest.

Brown eyes flickered back towards his own enlightening orbs and smiled. "Like a special coalition?" She offered to which he smiled lightly and nodded.

He sighed lightly and shifted in his seat to face her; attention given dutifully to Guinevere rather than what he couldn't go back in time to fix. "I saw something in them. They were willing to fight for Camelot. Something admirable. With a few guidelines and rules, they could become so much more. Where everyone is equal." He finished off. When he only saw a full grin on Gwen's face, a confused look flashed upon his features. "What?"

"Nothing." She quickly commented.

Head tilted to the side as a cocky smirk tugged on his soft lips. "Guinevere." He relayed as he usually did and just like always, he saw her fold into his request.

"You truly are becoming a wonderful leader, Arthur."

A look came over him as though he were studying her, admiring her. Loving her. Knowing full well that the pair were the only outside and they were not being spied upon, Arthur lifted his own hand before placing it upon her own in her lap. Fingers wrapped around her petite hand as he gave it a light squeeze, embracing the warmth that he felt at the touch.

Guinevere didn't bother releasing the grip or holding back but simply placed her other hand upon his. A small blush crept upon her cheeks as she kept a glance at their hands rather than him before she felt him wince. She snapped her attention onto him once again as he began squirming a little at the discomfort of his wound it seemed. "Arthur?"

"Fine, I'm fine. I think the-"

"Come on. Let's get that bandage changed." She whispered softly, standing up. She reluctantly let go of his hand before she waited and together, they walked back towards his room where she could, in fact, fix it all. Then again, perhaps it was her excuse of giving them a private moment.

Within minutes, she had placed a cloth into a bowl of warmed water and then marched towards Arthur who sat dutifully on the bed, shirt removed to reveal the thick bandage wrapped around his waist. Slowly, Arthur began removing the bandage around him and gently tossed it upon the table. His eyes fell upon his own wound while he felt the warm cloth against his skin. Gwen seemed rather distracted, or she attempted to be, at least. However, Arthur could hardly keep his eyes away from the beauty who stole his heart.

Before she could remove her hand to drown the cloth back into the water, he placed a hand upon her own as he had down earlier that day. This time, however, neither felt the need to part ways so quickly as there were no prying eyes in their midst. "Gwen-"

"It is alright, Arthur. Perhaps when you are king, things will change for-"

"What if I can't?" This time, his tone grew lower. Words were hoarse as he let his fingers curl over her hand, tickling at the palm.

"I don't believe that for a second." She whispered out loud, their distance closing in as he inadvertently brought her closer with ever words. "I believe that you can do anything." Lost in his gaze once again, she continued remaining frozen and only able to move with every tug he made to her hand.

Her words only warmed his heart as he slowly began realizing that he would have to make a change the second he could. "You astound me, Guinevere."

"Why is that?" She contemplated gently as her free hand simply hung lifelessly rose and rested upon his shoulder mechanically.

"The amount of faith you have in me. It's astounding." His free hand gently rose to her face, cupping her cheek. Thumb brushed upon her milk chocolate skin as he found himself hardly aching from the wound.

"I'll always believe in you, Arthur. That will never change no matter what happens." She leaned into his touch for a moment before she felt his soft lips upon her own, gentle and kind. The very effect he had upon her sent her spiraling into a new wave of emotions that she attempted to suppress. Yet, with every second she saw him, it changed drastically.

"I'll believe in us." He mumbled against her ear, lips hovering over her cheek in the process.

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**Note: I took an Arthurian literature class, so sometimes that gets pushed into my writing Merlin fics. Just keep that in mind, please.  
R||R, please.  
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. **


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